I was jealous of people who were laid off from Big Tech and posting about it since I got laid off from a startup and felt invisible. Then I realized shame drove my resentment.

• Hanna Matyiku-Nuñez was laid off from her job as a marketing manager at a small tech firm in 2021.
• She developed resentment toward her tech colleagues who got laid off from bigger companies.
• Matyiku-Nuñez realized she needed to be open and vulnerable to get through her layoff.

In November 2021, I found myself arriving early to the tech-layoff boom. I was laid off from my marketing position at a small startup most people had never heard of. I was also eight weeks into a six-month maternity leave.